New students to the Faculty of Arts can find assistance on the Arts Academic Advising webpage and can contact the Arts Academic Advisor at artsadvising@mtroyal.ca or 403.440.8585.

For Continuing Students, students may contact their Faculty of Arts major/program advisor listed here: Who is my advisor? Questions about changing your major, adding a minor, or academic standing can always be directed to artsadvising@mtroyal.ca 403.440.8585. 

mruGradU8 is a degree audit tool that outlines your degree requirements and tracks your progress. You can access mruGradU8 through myMRU.ca under the My Program tab. Click on the blue icon with the grad hat to open your audit dashboard. In addition to the advice you receive from your academic advisor, mruGradU8 is a great way to stay on track. 

You can find Program Planning Sheets for your BA major on the main Arts Academic Advising webpage. 

You can also review your program informaiton in the Academic Calendar under Program listing by credential or Academic Faculities & Programs. 

Connect with the Arts Academic Advisor to discuss your academic plan and your career goals. This will help the advisor to assist in proper referrals for career advice and planning, graduate studies, and experiences you may want to consider.

Here are some resources to tap into:

• Attend a Career Passion workshop though Student Counselling in Wellness Services
• One-on-one career counselling though Student Counselling in Wellness Services
• Work with our MRU Career Services team to realize what is possible with any Arts major
• Occinfo from alis.alberta.ca

The Career Passion workshop can help you evaluate your life and career interests while taking into consideration your values and goals, and other factors such as aptitudes, motivations and personal circumstances. You can go deeper with one-one-one career counselling.

It is recommended to meet with the Arts Academic Advisor to discuss the declaration of your major or changing majors within the Bachelor of Arts. Please contact the Arts Academic Advisor at 403.440.8585 or email artsadvising@mtroyal.ca to discuss your academic plan. 

The Bachelor of Arts has six possible majors and an Undeclared stream.

Anthropology
English
History
Policy Studies
Psychology
Sociology

It is easy to declare any one of the following five majors within the Bachelor of Arts (BA):
Anthropology
English
History
Policy Studies (minimum 60% in grade 12 Math required)
Sociology

The major in Psychology is competitive and will require an admission application. If you want this major, please arrange an appointment with the Arts Academic Advisor by calling 403.440.8585 or emailing artsadvising@mtroyal.ca with your available times between 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Monday-Friday.

To declare one of the above five declarable majors (excluding Psychology), you can submit the Declaration of Major - Bachelor of Arts form found here. You will be notified when your mruGradU8 program audit is updated to the new major (mruGradU8 is located in your My Program page of MyMRU - look for the blue icon with the grad hat and click to open your audit). Use your mruGradU8 program audit to help with planning your degree and consult with your major advisor for support with your program requirements.

Students must declare their major field of study within one year (ten courses) of enroling in the program. Students who have decided on their major are advised to declare it as soon as possible to facilitate proper course selection and access to core courses.

See the question How do I declare my major or change my major? for specifics about declaring.

Please contact the Arts Academic Advisor at 403.440.8585 or email artsadvising@mtroyal.ca to discuss your academic plan. 

Double majors must be chosen within the six majors offered as part of the Bachelor of Arts and include:

• 10 General Education courses, of which, four can fulfill the requirements of the double major.
• All core courses specified for each major (a minimum of thirty-two courses).
• Remaining credits to be completed as electives to acheive a total of 120 credits or 40 courses. 

If one of the majors you want to pursue is Psychology, you must have received admission to this major. 

For more information about pursuing a double major within the BA, contact the Arts Academic advisor at 403.440.8585 or artsadvising@mtroyal.ca. 

Minors are totally optional and are not required to graduate in the Bachelor of Arts. Completing a minor requires planning, so connect with your major advisor or the Arts Academic Advisor.

Minors are a way to pursue other interests and to gain skills you think will be useful. Adding a minor can also help plan courses you select for General Education and elective requirements, and sometimes even the major requirements of your degree. 

For a list of eligible minors, go to the Academic Calendar and find the Minors section. 

You can easily declare a minor by submitting a Declaration of Minor form found here. 

General Education is a breadth component of your degree. Ten courses must be completed to satisfy the General Education requirements to graduate with a Bachelor of Arts degree:

1. Four courses will be taken at the foundational level: one from each of the thematic clusters. 
2. Three courses will be taken at the second tier: no more than one from each of the thematic clusters. One of these courses must be from the Numeracy and Scientific Literacy Cluster
3. Three courses must be taken at the third tier, selected from at least two of the thematic clusters.

Use your mruGradU8 program audit tool to understand the structure of General Education. 

You can use the list of eligible General Education courses found in the Academic Calendar in the General Education section to assist with selection for the clusters and tiers. 

The number of electives you must complete in your degree will vary depending on the major you are pursuing. Consult your mruGradU8 program audit tool to see the elective block in your program. Or consult your program requirements in the Academic Calendar under Acadmeic Faculties & Programs or Program listing by credential. 

Electives are any 3-credit course of interest that you are eligible to register. You must satisfy any listed prerequisite(s). Some courses may have also program restrictions in the registration system that prevent you from taking them. 

Electives are courses you might find interesting. You can search for electives in two possible ways:
1. Use the General Education list of approved courses found in the General Education section of the Academic Calendar. These are all interesting courses that any university would have on offer. If you have already filled General Education positions, when you select another course from the same cluster list, it becomes an elective.
2. Use the master list of courses, Courses section, in the Academic Calendar. Any course can be an elective. When you read course descriptions, you may see an attribute in the description that says "GNED Cluster X Tier X." This means this course could be applied to General Education if you have the position open. If the position is filled, then it would be used as an elective. You may also see that a course doesn't have the GNED attribute in the description. If this is the case, that course can only apply as an elective in your program if it isn't related to your major. 

Student Learning Services have a number of supports for students, including academic success webinars, online appointments to meet with a Writing & Learning Strategist, the Peer Learning Support program, and a number of mentorship programs.  Students are encouraged to reach out early for assistance.

Access & Inclusion Services promotes an accessible, equitable and inclusive learning environment. They facilitate the academic accommodation process for students experiencing disability-related barriers, including: 

What can't you do with an Arts degree? The possibilities are endless.

Take action and work with our Career Services team to develp your career plan and identify opportunities and experiences to improve your employablitity after graduation. Education + Experience = Success!

Here are some resources to tap into:

• Work with our MRU Career Services team to realize what is possible with any Arts major
• Attend a Career Passion workshop though Student Counselling in Wellness Services
• One-on-one career counselling though Student Counselling in Wellness Services
• Occinfo

The Career Passion workshop can help you evaluate your life and career interests while taking into consideration your values and goals, and other factors such as aptitudes, motivations and personal circumstances. You can go deeper with one-one-one career counselling with Student Counselling, as well.